Where does “dross” come from?

Dross comes from Middle English drosse, from Old English drōs, related to Old English drōsna, ultimately from Proto-Germanic -snō and Proto-Indo-European -sneh₂.

dross (English): Waste or impure matter; Residue that forms on the...

Definitions

  1. Waste or impure matter; Residue that forms on the...

Ancestry of “dross”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishdrosse—
2Old Englishdrōs—
3Proto-Germanicdrōhsdregs, sediment
4Proto-Indo-Europeandʰrā́ksdregs, sediment

Words derived from “dross”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European dʰrā́ks →Every word from Proto-Germanic drōhs →Every word from Old English drōs →